The pumpkin spice latte is one of the most popular trends in recent years.
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What is Pumpkin Spice Latte?
The pumpkin spice latte is a coffee recipe that was developed and popularized thanks to the Starbucks brand. As the name suggests, the pumpkin and spice latte is made with coffee, pumpkin and a variety of spices.
This drink is suitable for the cold season, especially late autumn, which is characterized by gray skies and brown foliage.
The Origins of the Pumpkin Spice Latte
In January 2003, Starbucks hired Peter Dukes, Starbucks Espresso Director of America, with the creation of a holiday drink to follow the successful launch of seasonal winter drinks like Eggnog Latte and Peppermint Mocha.
Dukes met his team to find a special drink for the fall season. It was a difficult process because after several brainstorming sessions and product testing, nothing innovative emerged that could make a difference in the coffee industry.
They had to wait until a team member took a sip of coffee after eating a piece of pumpkin pie to realize that this concoction could actually work.
So, Dukes and his team decided to pair espresso with textured milk and whipped cream, along with pumpkin and a spice blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger traditionally used in pumpkin pie.
Thus, in the fall of 2003, the final recipe was marketed in 100 stores in the cities of Washington DC and Vancouver, where it was an instant hit. Sales of the drink exceeded even Starbucks’ expectations, prompting the company to stock up in stores.
In 2004, Starbucks brought out the pumpkin Spice Latte launched in the United States. Finally, in 2015, Starbucks changed the recipe to use pumpkin and remove artificial colors. The other ingredients have remained unchanged over time, including the spice mix.
How will the pumpkin Made a spice latte?
This is how a pumpkin becomes Spice Latte prepared for 2 people.
Ingredients
- 12 grams of brown sugar. But you can also use sweetener
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 30ml fresh pumpkin puree or canned pumpkin puree
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- 70 ml freshly brewed coffee
- 450 ml milk. Any type of milk can be used, although semi-skimmed milk and whole milk can add more body to the pumpkin spice latte.
- Whipping cream, sweetener and ground cinnamon for garnish.
Preparation
- make the pumpkin puree, we recommend the microwave for this, simply clean the pumpkin and place in a bowl, then cover with microwaveable cling film, then turn on the machine and program 5 minutes at maximum temperature.
- After 5 minutes check if the squash is soft. If so, you can take it out, otherwise you need to set a few more minutes.
- When the squash is done, you can mash it with a fork or blender until mashed.
- When the squash is well mashed, add the sugar along with the 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon of ginger, and the small amounts of nutmeg and ground cloves. Mix until combined into a dark brown paste.
- Brew the coffee to your liking.
- Heat the 450ml of milk to a high temperature without boiling it, then add the 70ml of fresh coffee.
- Add the pumpkin mixture with the pumpkin spices i.e. cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and ground cloves.
- Stir, but don’t let it boil.
- Allow the mixture to steep for a few minutes, then pour into two mugs.
- Garnish with whipped cream, sweetener, or cinnamon, if you like, and enjoy the pumpkin spice latte.
How do you drink Pumpkin Spice Latte cold?
You should follow the same preparation process, just add a glass with ice before pouring the mixture with the ingredients into the mug.
Tips
- When cleaning the pumpkin, do not throw away the seeds because you can use them as a garnish in various recipes such as creams, salads, soups or smoothies.
- If you use homemade oat milk, be sure to only use it to make the pumpkin spice latte cold, as it thickens a lot when heated.
- You can use coconut milk to add a more exotic flavor to the drink.
- For a creamier drink, add 1 teaspoon of almond butter.
Benefits of Pumpkin Spice Latte
The Pumpkin Spice Latte offers several health benefits, primarily because it contains pumpkin as a key ingredient.
Advantages
Boosts the immune system: Pumpkin contains vitamin C and beta-carotene, which help boost the immune system.
Helps with High Blood Pressure: The vitamin C and potassium in pumpkin are important for preventing high blood pressure.
It’s a source of fiber: Pumpkin Spice Latte is high in fiber, which aids in digestion and weight loss.
Promotes the elimination of fluids: This drink helps people who have problems with water retention as it has a diuretic effect. Therefore, the kidneys produce more urine to flush toxins out of the body.
Excellent Source of Iron: Pumpkin Spice Latte is an excellent source of iron as this element is vital to blood circulation health.
Improves Skin Health: This drink is rich in vitamin A and vitamin C, both of which support skin health.
Supports Eye Health: Vitamin E, vitamin C, and beta-carotene in pumpkin help protect eye health.
Increases Satiety: The 14 grams of protein this drink contains promotes satiety and may help you eat less throughout the day.
Pumpkin Spice Latte Recommendations
According to the American Heart Association, sugar consumption is not nutritionally beneficial.
They recommend limiting sugar consumption to a maximum of 36 grams per day for men, 24 grams per day for women and for children 10 years old and 19 grams per day for children 4 to 6 years old.
In this regard, you should know that the Original Pumpkin Spice Latte can contain up to 50g of sugar, which is equivalent to consuming about 96 M&M candies or 13 crisps.
Likewise, the Pumpkin Spice Latte contains a significant amount of calories that can reach as high as 390 calories per serving. That’s a very high number considering experts recommend limiting drinks to 250 calories or less per serving.
That is why we advise you to consume it wisely to avoid health problems such as obesity or even chronic diseases such as heart disease in the near future.
Here’s a low-sugar, less than 100-calorie recipe that should interest you.
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons pumpkin puree. You can make it at home with a blender, or you can buy it ready-made in a can.
- Ground cinnamon to taste
- 1 cup plant milk
- Fall spices to taste (see Regular Pumpkin Spice Latte Preparation)
- ½ cup of black coffee
Preparation
- Combine pumpkin puree, ginger, milk, ground cloves, and cinnamon in a saucepan over low heat to prevent milk from boiling. This allows the spices to release more of their essence.
- Blend all of the ingredients from step 1 with freshly brewed, highly concentrated coffee. You can sweeten the mixture as you like.
- Serve the preparation and garnish with whipped cream or another topping of your choice.
Fun Facts About Pumpkin Spice Latte
Here are some fun facts about this popular drink that you probably didn’t know.
- Since its launch in 2003, Starbucks has sold more than 400 million pumpkin spice lattes.
- Until 2015, Starbucks had not used pumpkin puree as an ingredient in its Pumpkin Spice Latte.
- The milk used for the pumpkin spice latte can easily be replaced with a plant-based drink.
- According to CNBC, the Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte is the most popular seasonal beverage with global sales exceeding $420 million.
- In 2015, Forbes magazine estimated that this drink brought Starbucks $100 million in sales.
- Starbucks has endeavored to market its product primarily to the male and female age group between 25 and 40 years of age. That’s why she uses different modern designs on social networks like Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
- In 2013, Starbucks launched a campaign for the drink’s season opening, allowing customers to unlock the drink at nearby stores with a code before the release date.
- Between August and January 2014, 29,000 tweets with the hashtag “#pumpkinspice” were reached.
- After the launch of the pumpkin spice latte, other companies also began making pumpkin spice latte-inspired products, most notably M&M’s and Dunkin Donuts. Other companies also began making lotions, shampoos, and candles.
- Marketing experts claim that the drink’s success is due to Starbucks’ marketing campaigns.
- Before the introduction of the pumpkin and spice latte, there was a seasonal dessert called pumpkin pie that had been enjoyed as a traditional Thanksgiving dish in the United States for centuries.
- The sweet pumpkin pie spice, the main ingredient in pumpkin pie, has appeared in cookbooks since the 1890s.
- Peter Dukes, the inventor of the pumpkin spice latte, was born in Seattle, USA.
- Pumpkin Spice Latte is served at Starbucks chains in more than 50 countries.
- According to Nielsen and Forbes, the market for pumpkin spice lattes and flavored foods was worth approximately US$600 million in 2018, of which a third, or US$200 million, was accounted for by sales of pumpkin spice lattes.
What’s the future of the pumpkin spice latte?
The pumpkin spice latte has become one of the most important seasonal drinks worldwide.
This is mainly because Starbucks is no longer the only one selling it, but other coffee shops and chains have also developed their own versions to make the drink even more popular.
According to experts, this drink also has the potential to convince consumers who are not used to choosing another drink from the menu to try other types of coffee.
